“Thirty thousand people on the waiting list last year. We added another 7,000 I think this year,” she told 1010 WINS’ Gary Baumgarten.

(credit: Alex Silverman, WCBS 880)

Those attending the viral meetup had to wear white, bring white folding tables and chairs along with white tablecloths. A live performance of jazz standards and other classics played throughout dinner as guests sipped on wine and champagne.

Once dinner was over, a DJ began to spin meat-packing favorites as the diners began to waive their napkins through the air and danced on tables, CBS New York’s Scott Birnbaum reported.

Pop-up picnics will also be staged in Philadelphia on Thursday, Chicago on Friday and next week in Vancouver, Singapore and Brisbane, Australia.

Diner en Blanc, French for dinner in white, started in Paris in 1988 by a group of friends. The free-of-charge event grew by word of mouth and social media to dozens of cities worldwide.

(TM and Copyright 2012 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2012 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)